


Rewind to Time

by Gaseth



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Light Angst, M/M, Multi, Panic Attack, Past references to Schlatt and Quackity, Polyamory, Quackity has PTSD, Referenced Trauma, The boys all share one bed, Time Travelling Karl Jacobs, Touch-starved Quackity, skephalo if you squint, skeppy has adhd
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-16 04:28:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29326251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gaseth/pseuds/Gaseth
Summary: Sapnap wants to go back in time. Karl doesn't want his fiance to take that leap, and Quackity still has trauma to work through.
Relationships: Alexis | Quackity/Karl Jacobs/Sapnap, Skeppy/Badboyhalo, Zak Ahmed/Darryl Noveschosch
Comments: 19
Kudos: 246





	Rewind to Time

It was sometime early in the morning, maybe around seven or so, when Sapnap had popped the question.

No, they were already engaged, so it wasn't a question about becoming something they already were. Instead, Sapnap got up shockingly early and shook Karl and Quackity awake before telling them they needed to get their shoes and coats on and meet him outside somewhere where nobody could spy on them. It should have been an odd request, but Sapnap had definitely done weirder things before (which included eating gum off of the wall of the Community House), so Karl didn't really give it much thought as he pulled on a pair of loose pants, along with stompy grey boots. 

"It's seven in the goddamn morning," Quackity was saying as he stole a pair of Sapnap's sweatpants and putting them on, "What does he want?"

"I guess we'll see," Karl responded, pulling up his hood and trying to draw out a tangle that had developed in his hair while he waited for Quackity. The latter seemed to be struggling to find his shoes, as well as beanie to put over his hair, before exclaiming a frustrated "goddamn it!" and settling on a pair of sneakers a size too big. He grabbed a beanie off the nightstand, and then motioned to Karl, who quickly opened the door and saw Sapnap waiting outside of the house, leg bobbing with impatience. He gave his bandana (how come Karl was the only one who didn't wear anything on his hair?) a sharp tug before turning and crossing over through the vaguely gravel-dotted road to get to the Prime Path. Karl actually remembered inlaying this road with the very gravel beneath his feet, that he had definitely gone too deep underwater for. He remembered coming back home as he shivered out his story to Sapnap, who promptly turned on the shower as hot as it could go before shoving Karl (who was still fully clothed) in.

Good times, good times.

The Prime Path was littered in its usual debris of leaves, broken stone swords, string, and gunpowder. People _really_ needed to stop killing mobs willy-nilly before the Prime Path just became monster loot instead of wood. And throwing their broken or useless tools on the ground. It made everything a mess, really.

The entire walk was silent, except for the sound of boots on wood, and the ocassional heavy breath from Sapnap. The latter seemed incredibly nervous about something, balling and un-balling his fists, biting his nails, swinging his arms, looking around. These were nervous Sapnap behaviours. He had picked most of them up from Bad, who seemed to always be confident with that nervous edge. 

_Runs in the family, I guess._

The trio passed by a few landmarks on the way to wherever the hell they were supposed to be going, which included the mob grinder, the basement where all the statues were supposed to be built (but really just became the home of The Egg), and the Inspirational Quotes Shop (whose name was extremely contradictory to the services it sold). Some of this stuff felt centuries old. Maybe it was.

Sapnap continued, however, down to where the hedges broke off into the section of land that you didn't step on if you wanted your head on your shoulders when you left. Bad's Mansion definitely was dangerous territory, given the anarchism and unpredictability of Skeppy, and the raw, looming power of Bad. But Sapnap was family, so he skipped along the grassy path. But instead of going and knocking on his parents' door, he instead took a sharp left, veering off the Prime Path to head off to a small shack that was a bit away from Bad's mansion. The Dreamon Hunting Center?

"My feet hurt," Karl quietly complained as Sapnap led them into the center. Really, if you could call it that. It was more like a booth, with how small it was.

Quackity slammed himself down into a seat next to Sapnap, and immediately was talking, "Okay, you need to tell us what the fuck is up, Sapnap."

Sapnap held up his hands in his own defense, "Look, I swear it's important."

"We better be getting married," Quackity muttered under his breath.

"Unfortunately, no," Sapnap said, drawing one knee up to his chest and letting the other leg swing freely, "I needed to ask Karl something."

"Oh my fucking god," Quackity leaned back and was laughing now, mostly filled with sarcasm and pain, "You took us all the way out into the middle of fucking nowhere just to tell Karl something?"

"Yes, it's important." Sapnap's agitation returned, and he began picking his nails, "And I didn't want anyone else to hear it, genius."

Quackity scoffed with a roll of his eyes, "Then spit it out, dickwad."

Sapnap took a deep breath, then turned to look towards Karl, "You know how you can time travel, right?"

Immediately, Karl tenssed. His time travelling was a touchy subject for him. Of course, there was the constant fear that he'd forget his fiances, or that he'd get so caught up in a past period that he'd never return to the present, or the chance that he could die while he time travelled. He didn't really like discussing it with Quackity, because the latter always overworried about it and would get stressed at even the idea of Karl dying. And Sapnap always seemed too awkward to discuss it with. So, for the most part, he sort of kept the information between him and his partners, "Yes." 

"I..." Sapnap hesitated, his gaze flashing from Quackity to Karl, then sharply exhaling and turning to Karl, "I want to go back in time."

"Absolutely not," Karl immediately said, taking a worried notice in the way that Sapnap's expression dropped, and immediately he was leaning forward and trying to remedy it, "But not because I don't want you to be happy, I kinda just...I don't want to put you in danger. You could get killed. I might not even be able to take you back."

Sapnap nodded, but still looked unconvinced, "Yeah, but...Karl, please." He was giving _those_ eyes, the ones that crinkled at the edges and made Karl's heart pound in that stupid way that would never get old. Sapnap leaned forard, resting his head against the place where Karl's shoulder met his chest, Sapnap already slithering his arms around his fiance's waist. Oh godadamn it, Karl was so gay. So stupidly gay. The warmth that immediately flooded in from his fiance was enough to make him wail to the skies and plead to DreamXD why he had to be so hopelessly in love.

"Please, Karl?" Sapnap sounded particularly beggy here, nuzzling into the subject's chest, "I promise I'll try to be safe."

Karl really was blushing right now. There was no way in hell he wasn't blushing right now. He was supposed to be scolding his fiance about wanting to do something completely dangerous, not be hopelessly flushed and falling in deeper love than he already was in. Something completely embarrassed shot through him and he reached a hand up to run his fingers through Sapnap's hair, "I would, I really honkin' would, I just want to keep you safe."

"What if I don't want to be safe, huh?" Sapnap retorted immediately, "What if I wanna live life on the edge?"

"That's dangerous," Karl fired back quickly, but the blush was only building on his face.

"You two are so gay, _please_ get a room," Quackity groaned sarcastically from across the room, "Unless I get to cuddle with you."

"No!" Sapnap immediately shot back defensively, his head sliding down to rest his chin on Karl's thigh, which only made the latter's heart pound faster "Karl, pretty please can we go back in time?"

Maybe if Karl wasn't so gay, maybe if he could resist the puppy eyes Sapnap had given him, maybe if his fiance's heat wasn't seeping into his thighs right now, he'd be able to muster up a refusal. But right now, with Sapnap so close to him and Quackity giving an expectant look with raised eyebrows made him sigh. Goddamn it, he really was too gay to even begin trying to deal with this. He took a deep breath and very slowly said, "We can time travel. But you have to follow the rules."

"I will, I will!" Sapnap's voice immediately came.

"Quackity, are you gonna go?" Karl asked.

The subject shrugged, looking indifferent as he rose one hand to pick at the scar that shot from his lip to his nose, "Sure, why not."

"Pog!" Sapnap shouted, sitting up, "So, can we go right now?"

"No," Karl's response was immediate.

"Come on!" Sapnap immediately dreared, practically sitting in Karl's lap, "Don't you love me?"

Quackity slightly cringed at those words.

"Yes, of course I love you, idiot," Karl scolded affectionately, gently scratching at Sapnap's scalp, "That's why I'm trying to keep you safe."

Quackity nodded and promptly stood up, "Can we go back home?"

"It's gonna be such a long walk back though," Sapnap dreared in response, burying his face in Karl's chest, "Let's just stay here."

Karl wrapped his arms around Sapnap's waist and gently inhaled, "In your demon shack in the middle of nowhere?"

"Bad's house isn't too far," Quackity cut in, "Wanna go couch-surf with Sap's dad?"

"No, no, please no," Sapnap tightened his grip around Karl, "My dad is so embarrassing."

"He seems like a nice guy," there was something sickly sweet in Quackity's tone and he nudged Karl's knee, "C'mon, let's go stay with BadBoyHalo."

"You don't have to say it like that," Sapnap took his sweet time curling away from Karl and rising up to his feet, then stretching and hinging open his jaw in a dramatic yawn, "C'mon, let's go."

-

"Sapnap!" the subkect was being embraced by a demon the second the door was open, and Karl has to laugh out of second-hand-pain that he was feeling from Sapnap. The latter was very quick to draw away (which was surprising, considering that he could hardly let go out Karl when they had to leave the Dreamon shack).

"And it's Karl and Quackity!" Bad exclaimed, drawing the two into a hug. Honestly, Karl didn't know why Sapnap was so eager to escape Bad's touch. The latter's hugs were exactly like his son's, big, warm, and loving. Full of all the affection a person could ever need. Karl did have to admit that Bad's claws dug in the wrong way, and Quackity looked miles uncomfortable being held by Bad. So even though the affection was tempting, Karl drew away, leaving a gap for Quackity to as well. When Karl's hand reached out, Quackity didn't hesitate to take it immediately. The way the latter's nails dug into Karl's palm told him one thing. He was anxious. Karl shifted a little closer as the group stepped through the doorway.

Skeppy was sitting with his back on the floor and legs as far apart as they could go, rested on the couch. He seemed to be rifling through a deck of cards, and looked up at the sight of visitors, "Oh, hey, what's up?"

"Couch-surfing," Sapnap grinned, "And, you know, spending time with the best fiances I could ask for," he cooed the last part, slinging an arm around Karl's waist.

"Shut up," Quackity quickly cut in, but Sapnap could catch the blush building on his face, "God, you're so gay."

"Yes, yes, I know," Sapnap beamed, "How's it been going with you two?"

"Nothing much," Bad shrugged, "Skeppy's in one of those moods where he refuses to wear pants around the house."

"Shut up!" Skeppy snapped back, "Pants are uncomfortable."

"Uh-huhh," Bad said.

The conversation continued on like that for a while. Sapnap and Karl answering Bad's endless barrage of questions, while Skeppy ocassionally chimed in to make a remark about something Bad had said, which would enter the two into a playful argument.

Quackity flashed a look at Sapnap that definitely communicated how uncomfortable being around these two people was for him, and Karl decided to take the situation into his own hands (er, hand, given that one of his hands was currently being death-gripped by Quackity), "I'm honking tired. Do you have a room we can sleep in?"

"Two beds or one?" Bad asked, giving a flick of his tail as his gaze passed through the trio.

"One," Sapnap quickly said, and Bad nodded, leading them up the stairs and into the bedroom farthest from the stairwell. The inside wasn't very magnificent, just a wardrobe with clothes inside ("Some of Sapnap's old stuff" Bad had claimed), a nightstand with a book on it (apparently a book of spells), some blankets on the floor, and a bed that looked big enough for the entire server to fit into it.

"Well, we'll let you stay here for a while," Bad said with a slight laugh, "Not sure how long it'll be until Skeppy gives you the boot, but y'know."

"Yeah," Quackity was drawing his nails against the thick scar on his face, "I think we're gonna crash now. Night, Bad."

Bad beamed, "Night, Big Q."

The second the door was shut, Quackity flung himself into Karl's arms, which caught the latter so off-guard that he let out a yelp and stumbled back onto the bed, "What the honk, Quackity?" Affection lined his tone as he wrapped his arms around the subject's waist and pulled him closer. Quackity let out a soft little giggle, nuzzling into Karl's chest.

"Hey!" Sapnap called in offense, flopping down next to the duo, "Don't leave me out of the cuddles."

"Go away," Quackity chuckled playfully, and it grew into a loud laugh as Sapnap also moved his arms to hold Karl. The three exchanged a glance between each other, and all just started cackling. Maybe it was stress, maybe it was the inherent intimacy of sleeping in a big bed, or maybe it was the fact that it was seven in the morning and three adult men were sleeping in one of their dad's house.

Sapnap began pressing kisses to Karl's hair, which elicited a warm little laugh out of the latter. Quackity mimicked the gesture, peppering Karl's face in kisses while he cracked up. When the two finally laid off of their assault, Karl was wiping his face with his sleeve and scrunching up his face in mock disgust, to which Sapnap was legally required to act offended at.

"Stop, stop!" Karl giggled at Sapnap pulled him close to his chest and began kissing his forehead.

"You two are morons," Quackity deadpanned, quickly pulling away and sliding out the bed and picking up the fluffiest blanket he could find, throwing it back onto the bed. And Karl and Sapnap, like the childish nimrods they were, immediately began fighting for it, yanking it to each side.

"I hate you two," Quackity added to his original statement, "Move over Sap, I get the middle tonight."

Sapnap stood up to let Quackity slide in between him and Karl, and once Quackity was firmly pressed up against Karl, Sapnap laid back down and immediately made moves to hold Quackity by the waist. The latter relaxed upon Sapnap's touch greeting his skin and stretched open his jaw in a yawn, resting his head against Karl's chest. The steady thump of Karl's heart against his chest lulled Quackity, and his eyelids began drooping. He was aware of Sapnap and Karl's soft voices, of Karl's gentle hands in his hair, the soft grip of Sapnap. He loved the way each of his partners would careful hold another, their hands gently locking together, soft words murmured into ears, holding each other by the waist.

But of course, with every flash of affection, there had to be brace of pain.

It made Quackity feel loved and cherished. It made him feel needed, the way his fiances spoke to him and held him. He thought back to not-so-long-ago, when he was this close to another partner. Schlatt. The two slept in the same bed, but never held each other in this type of way. They were so shakily distant and Quackity was always unsure of their relationship status. He remembered trembling on cold nights, reaching out to try and absorb any of Schlatt's warmth, only to have his hand slapped away, only to be told he was too disgusting to be held. Quackity ended up on the floor a lot of those nights.

In a blink, the way he was burrowed into Karl's chest felt wrong. A deep knot twisted within Quackity as he shifted away from Karl's embrace, panic catching in his chest. If Sapnap wasn't right there behind him, he'd be locking his arms over his skull and shrieking until his throat went raw. Karl's snores and the sound of the air coming from the heater seemed to drown out his panicky breathing.

But Sapnap seemed to be able to sense it, and very gently started up a rhythm of thumbing circles into Quackity's hips as a method to calm him down. A very gentle whisper came from him, a soft reassurance in Quackity's ear. Very slowly, the latter's breathing began to level out, but his breath was still shallow. Quackity shifted closer to Sapnap. Who definitely seemed to know whatever was going on and tighten his grip, pulling Quackity closer.

"It's okay," Sapnap softly whispered, "I got you."

_I love you_ was the last thought Quackity had before he dozed off in Sapnap's arms.

**Author's Note:**

> hi I hope you enjoyed! in case you forgot, and you like this fic, consider dropping a kudo and leaving me a comment! it helps me out a ton and it's the best way to support me. I also have a tumblr @gaseth


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